Academy prepare for end of season test

9 May 2016

Rotherham United’s Academy are set for games against some of English football’s top teams at AESSEAL New York Stadium this week.

The Millers’ under 14 age group will be taking on Middlesbrough this evening, whilst teams from Liverpool and Manchester United are also in town as the scholars prepare to end the season with a host of highly-anticipated fixtures.

“We have three games on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday which we are all looking forward to,” development phase lead coach Ciarán Toner told www.themillers.co.uk

“We have Middlesbrough under 14s coming down, which will be a really good test considering their category status, and hopefully we will learn from that experience.

“I am looking forward to seeing how the players cope psychologically in a game against that sort of opposition.”

The under 15 and under 12/13 age group will also have an opportunity to impress the Academy staff over the next few days, whilst the youngsters will also have the experience of following in the footsteps of the first team by playing on the AESSEAL New York Stadium surface.

“Tuesday the under 15s are playing against Liverpool and that will be a really tough game again,” added Ciarán.

“We took an under 14 team over there not so long ago, and we know what they are about and how good they are. They have an impressive Academy facility, which is virtually full-time, so we expect them to be strong.

“It will be a good challenge for the under 15s who are going into an important year next season. It is a real opportunity for us to end the season on a high, and a chance for the players to put themselves into the forefront of our minds going into the summer break.

“On Wednesday we have an under 12/13 combined game against Manchester United. This is a big opposition at any age group. It will be a real tough game for our players but another great occasion for them, especially at that young age.”